Prepping for its U.S. expansion, Singapore-based indoor positioning technology firm YFind has launched a broader analytics tool so that its customers can slice and dice foot traffic information in malls.
The company’s service tracks unique visitors as they move through a mall. It relies on Wi-Fi to do this, so it can track users who have their Wi-Fi active on their phones. Because it doesn’t… → Read More
At last. Starting today, the MTA is switching on wireless and cellular connectivity in 30 underground subway stations around Manhattan, and the fledgling network will expand to all 277 of the MTA’s subway stations by 2016. → Read More
After a week of rumors, this doesn’t come as a huge surprise anymore: Google today settled the privacy case brought against it by 37 states and the District of Columbia. In total, Google will pay $7 million dollars, a number that isn’t going to cause a lot of sleepless nights at company headquarters. Every state will get a share of the $7 million, so even the eight lead states that… → Read More
Open Garden, one of the finalists at TechCrunch Disrupt New York last year, just launched the newest version of its Android, Mac and Windows app that makes sharing your mobile internet connections even easier. In many ways, this 2.0 release, which the company presented at the Launch conference this morning, fulfills the promises Open Garden made when it first launched. → Read More
We wander the streets with tiny computers in our pockets and in our hands. We talk casually to these computers, just like Captains Kirk and Picard talked to the computers on their Enterprises. With the push of a button, our computers give us unprecedented access to the bulk of human knowledge. These computers sometimes talk back to us. But underneath all the noise and chatter of speech, the… → Read More
JiWire, the location-based advertising company that uses WiFi networks to locate users and deliver ads, has signed a deal with Advanced Wireless Group to provide free WiFi services in airports in the U.S. The deal will cover 293 million passengers annually and includes major hubs like San Francisco, Los Angeles International, Minneapolis and Baltimore- Washington. This is an extension of a… → Read More
The founders behind Karma (no, not that Karma) think that there’s something fundamentally broken in the market for mobile providers. And they’re hardly alone. So, the TechStars grads set out to create a new format, one that eschews the traditional subscription model for a pay-as-you-go approach to mobile bandwidth.
In an effort to realize their vision of providing anyone and everyone with a… → Read More
In practice, most Wi-Fi routers offer much less than their advertised speeds. Although I’ve seen some fast throughput in my time, most of the gear we use is rated for much higher than network traffic will allow. Some researchers at NC State University , however, have figured out a way, in software, to improve throughput by 700%. → Read More
As you might be aware, Google Fiber has set out to make all the world, or at least Kansas City, have fast and accessible Internet access. Today, the company announced that it is now wiring homes in the area with its high-speed internet.
As we noted previously, 180 out of 202 areas that were eligible for the service hit their pre-registration goals. Now the service is being put in, and I’m… → Read More
Boingo Wireless may have made its name with paid WiFi hotspot access, but today it is doubling down on free: the public WiFi operator is buying Cloud Nine Media, a startup co-founded by ex-Googler Sebastian Tonkin that specializes in sponsored WiFi services, which in turn cost nothing for consumers to use. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The acquisition is a mark of how public… → Read More
In a world where limits go down and pricing goes up, there’s nothing better than free connectivity.
Boingo Wireless, in collaboration with Google Offers, is bringing free WiFi to over 200 locations in New York City this summer. The partnership lasts from June 25 to September 7, 2012, and if I didn’t already mention this, it’s entirely free. → Read More
In the U.S., 61% of all households currently have WiFi networks installed at home. According to data from Strategy Analytics, this means the U.S. is ahead of countries like Spain (57.1%), Mexico (31.5%) and India (2.5%). At the same time, though, this only puts the U.S. somewhere in the lower half of WiFi adoption among developed nations. In countries like South Korea (80.3%), the UK (73.3%) and… → Read More
Houseplants can be hard to care for, even when watered regularly on a sunny windowsill. A new device from Swiss startup Koubachi takes the guesswork out of plant care through real-time monitoring and notifications when the plant needs attention. → Read More
The Gillmor Gang — Robert Scoble, John Taschek, Kevin Marks, and Steve Gillmor — took a WiFi stroll through the forest that is Hollywood’s attempt to lock down our TVs. It’s really too late, what with SOPA boycotts, reverse engineering of the Apple AirPlay bus, and Microsoft’s slow fade from CES underway. But that doesn’t stop the Cartel from trying.
It may turn out that you can someday… → Read More
At the end of this month, China’s capital city will begin rolling out free WiFi service in various hotspots across the city. The “My Beijing” wireless network, as it is to be called, is backed by three of the country’s largest telecom companies, China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, and will provide 2Mbps broadband WiFi to approximately 60 percent of Beijing through some 90,000 access… → Read More
Attention workaholics: your business trip a la rail was just made that much more efficient, if you’re using Amtrak, of course.
The nation’s intercity railway has just added Wi-Fi service to 12 new East Coast routes, bringing the interwebs to almost 60 percent of all Amtrak passengers. → Read More
Remember Connectify? The downloadable software that turns PCs into Wi-Fi hotspots in just a few minutes? It looks like the company now has a new investor: In-Q-Tel (IQT), which just so happens to be the strategic investment firm that seeks out new technologies for the U.S. Intelligence Community, including the CIA. → Read More
Skype just launched a new iOS application that lets users locate Wi-Fi hotspots where they can pay for access using Skype Credit. It currently supports over 1 million hotspots worldwide, including those found in hotels, airports, train stations, convention centers, bars and restaurants. The advantage of using this app over buying a voucher directly with the hotspot service provider is that you… → Read More
Yesterday, the Council of Europe released a report recommending that member states rethink the way they look at radiation used in wireless communication, putting it on par with the type of health hazards found in cigarettes and genetically altered foods. The report suggests that member states should push for a return to wired communication and a ban on Wi-Fi in schools. This seems to be a pretty… → Read More
About two and a half years ago after “losing” (but really winning, because it was forced open) the FCC’s 700Mhz spectrum auction, Google set its sights on another goal: the opening of the so-called “white space” (which Google had actually been working on alongside the spectrum opening). White space is the name given to the vacant airwaves between television channels, airwaves which are… → Read More
PogoPlug keeps getting better and better. Today they’re announcing that wireless printing, first mentioned earlier this summer, is now available. Users can print from iPads, iPhones, Androids and pretty much any other Internet-connected device. While you’re vacationing in Rio, you can print off instructions for your buddy who’s house sitting for you! Or you can print off a stack of vacation photos… → Read More
Clearwire launched their Rover – pay as you go internet service today, offering unlimited usage for $5 a day, $20 a week, or $50 for a month of 4G service. The Rover service is accessed via one of two ways, either from the Rover Solo; a single system dongle, or the Rover Puck which allows connectivity with up to eight devices at a time. The Rover Solo dongle sells for $99, and the Puck will… → Read More
Short version: transfer the photos you take from your camera to your computer without hassles, and without wires, using the X2 Pro card from Eye-Fi. Add in the ability to automatically post photos to a growing number of online sites, geotagging, and “Endless Memory” and the Pro X2 card is a great buy at $149. → Read More
Google cannot contain its legal problems surrounding the inadvertent collection of personal data from WiFi networks by ots global fleet of Street View cars. Earlier today, police in South Korea raided Google’s offices there to confiscate computers storing data collected from Street View cars in that country. This action follows similar investigations in France, Germany, the UK (where Google was… → Read More
Gogo Inflight Internet by Aircell and GroundLink’s LimoRes.com today announced a partnership and promotion to give air travelers free, inflight wifi.
The way you get the freebie is pretty standard: while you’re flying access Gogo’s portal, look for the ground transportation link and book a limo from the airport in your destination city. Wait for a promotional code to arrive in your e-mail… → Read More
Have you been looking for a way to call your Facebook friends on your iPhone or your Android device? Haven’t figured out their numbers yet? A new solution from Vonage offers free calls to all you Facebook friends who, virally, have downloaded the same app. The calls work over WiFi and 3G/4G networks. The app, called Vonage Mobile for Facebook, is an odd, viral solution for voice… → Read More
Wondered what jailbreaking was good for? If you’re using an iPhone 4 you can download My3G, a program that convinces iOS that it is using WiFi when it is really using 3G. This, in turn, lets you run Facetime over 3G.
The app costs $3.99 and is available in the Rock app depository. → Read More
You’ll soon be able to use your phone in the New York City subway system. It’s part of a $200 million renovation of the system, which, well, not to say that it’s falling apart, but it’s seen better days. There used to be a W train, for example. Memories. → Read More
It took years for the technology to come out, but in-flight WiFi was supposed to be the next big thing. The problem is, no one really uses it. Is it still too expensive? Too much of a pain to pull out the laptop? Whatever the reason, less then 10% of people flying are using in-flight wifi. → Read More
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